Robin
|aliases=Robin |family= |actor=Chris O'Donnell |job=Circus performer (former) Vigilante (in secret) |appearances=''Batman Forever'' Batman & Robin |status=Alive |appeared=''Batman Forever'' Batman & Robin |image2= }} Dick Grayson is the young vigilante known as Robin. Grayson is the partner of crime-fighter Bruce Wayne. Biography Early life Dick Grayson was raised as a circus performer. His entire nuclear family performed in an acrobat act called the Flying Graysons. Tragedy Psychotic gangster Two-Face murdered Dick's family when they acted against his attempt to bomb the circus. Commissioner Gordon took him to Bruce Wayne's house so they could sulk together. Robin Eventfully Dick found the entrance to the Batcave and joined Bruce as crime fighter. This lead to confrontation between Dick and Two-Face, which he found somewhat satisfying. A family in conflict Dick continued to work with Batman but eventually found Bruce aggravating, claiming that everything was "his way or the highway." He wanted more independence in the field and wanted to be known as more than just "Batman's sidekick." His recklessness put him in danger in the field, resulting in him being frozen solid by Mr. Freeze and forcing Batman to save him and let Freeze escape, leaving Batman frustrated in him. Robin attended the Gotham Plaza Charity Ball with Batman, and both were surprised by the unexpected appearance of Poison Ivy. Robin was instantly smitten by the beautiful redhead, the seeds of love already planted within him. Ivy affected both him and Batman with her pheromones and whispered flirts to both of them, offering them both sexual pleasures. This further drove a wedge between the two of them and they got into a bidding war for Poison Ivy, who was delighted at already succeeding in driving the Dynamic Duo apart. The bidding was interrupted when Mr. Freeze and his goons crashed the party and robbed several items that were donated. Before Robin followed Batman after Freeze, he stood staring longingly at Poison Ivy. Ivy noticed the young hero staring at her and teasingly blew him a kiss. Batman soon dragged Robin away to chase Freeze, but the young hero couldn't get the beautiful image of his new crush out of his mind. This was the beginning of the ill-fated relationship between Robin and Poison Ivy. Shortly after pursuing Freeze the duo managed to capture him and send him to Arkham Asylum, but Robin was furious that Batman remotely shut down his motorcycle in the middle of the chase when he attempted a dangerous maneuver to catch Freeze, even though he claimed he could handle it. At the Batcave, Bruce and Dick argued with each other, with Dick claiming Bruce is just trying to hog everything for himself, including Poison Ivy. Bruce warned Dick that if he wanted to stay in his home and stay on the team he must follow his rules, but Dick stormed off claiming that there was no team because Bruce would never trust him. Dick's words left an impact on Bruce, who seeked advice from Alfred. Meanwhile, Dick did all the research he could on Poison Ivy, wanting to know more about her and who she really is, his crush slowly evolving into an obsession. Eventually, Batman and Robin were contacted by Gordon and met him at Freeze's old hideout. They were informed that Poison Ivy had broken Freeze out of Arkham with the assistance of her enforcer Bane and all three were now at large. While observing Freeze's wife Nora and how he was researching a cure for her, the duo were lured to the basement by Poison Ivy's pheromone dust. Upon arriving they were immediately attacked by Bane, and Robin was knocked aside, stumbling down the stairs of the walkway and crashing into the props below. Poison Ivy ambushed Robin from behind, greeting him warmly. Putting his feelings for Ivy aside, Robin tried to arrest Poison Ivy, telling her to surrender herself, but Ivy was unintimidated by The Boy Wonder and interrupted him by mockingly blowing more of her Love Dust in his face. Stunned silent, Robin's crush was reawakened, and Ivy asked The Boy Wonder if he wanted a kiss. Without waiting for an answer, Ivy began to lean forward, with Robin also silently leaning in. Just before their lips could meet though, they were interrupted by Bane tossing Batman over the walkway and him landing right next to them, startling them both and turning their attention towards him. With his head clear, Robin ignored Poison Ivy and rushed off to confront Bane, leaving Batman with Ivy. However, Robin was easily overpowered and defeated by Bane. Batman was soon ambushed by Bane and locked in a headlock and Robin tried to assist him. Before he could though, his path was blocked by Poison Ivy, who blew more Love Dust in his face and backed him into a corner on the walkway. Ivy easily seduced Robin, playing on Robin's inexperience and ego, slowly wrapping her arms around him and pulling him into a hug, with him offering no resistance. Ivy told him he didn't need Batman anymore and could be the real hero. She spoke of seeing his own "Robin-Signal" shining bright in the sky, and told him she wanted to guide him to his true potential and be with him forever. Robin said nothing to Ivy at all, believing every word she said to him. His crush on Ivy had fully blossomed into love and he believed she loved him too. His heart overwhelming his better judgment, Robin forgave everything Ivy had done, believing they were now on the same side and in a romantic relationship, and slowly wrapped his arms around her waist, returning her hug and pulling her closer to him. Slowly the two leaned forward, holding each other close, as Ivy whispered to Robin to let her kiss him. Just as their lips were a breath away from each other though, they were once again interrupted by Batman, who had defeated Bane and shouted for Robin not to kiss Ivy. Batman realized that Ivy had been determined to kiss both of them and correctly guessed that she was trying to poison them via a kiss, remembering an early victim from the Gotham Airport who died via poison. Robin however was blinded by love, and refused to believe anything Batman had said, thinking he was just jealous that Ivy was in love with Robin instead of him and was trying to stop them from being together. Getting between Ivy and Batman to protect Ivy, Robin shoved Batman back and quickly attacked him in a rage. He was quickly overpowered by his mentor though and thrown into a vat of ice cream as Poison Ivy made her escape, laughing at the Dynamic Duo. Batman pulled Robin out of the vat, but Robin angrily stated their partnership was over and he's going solo like Ivy suggested. Robin stormed out of the hideout, completely unaware that Ivy had perfectly manipulated him into turning against The Dark Knight. Dick and Bruce continued to argue at the Wayne Mansion, with Bruce stating he would go after Freeze and Ivy alone since Dick couldn't be trusted around Ivy. Dick accused Bruce of simply trying to keep him away from Ivy and wanting her to himself, believing that was the reason he stopped them from kissing back at Freeze’s hideout. Bruce tried to tell him she had done something to them to make them obsessed with her, which is why Dick wasn’t thinking clearly. But Dick stubbornly stated he was thinking clearly, and that he loved Ivy and would be with her whether Bruce liked it or not. Later, a Robin-Signal began shining in the sky, and Robin instantly knew it was Ivy's doing, believing it was a symbol of her love to him and that she was calling him to her. He suited up and prepared to leave to meet her, but Bruce stopped him and begged him one last time to listen to him about how Ivy was dangerous, asking him to listen to him not just as his partner, but as his friend and family. Robin followed the signal and soon arrived at Poison Ivy's lair, The Turkish Bath House, and saw it overgrown with exotic plants. Robin slowly made his way inside the lair, with the path behind him being blocked by vines as he progressed further inside. He eventually arrived in the center of the lair, and saw it had a large lily pond in the center of the room and flowers raining from the ceiling. Several large leaves pulled back like curtains upon his arrival, revealing a giant floral plant bud at the end of the pond. The bud soon bloomed and a light shined down on it, revealing Poison Ivy, looking more beautiful than ever with a new red dress, a new hairstyle, and now wearing eye-shadow makeup, all just for Robin. Robin was stunned silent by Ivy’s reveal and enhanced beauty, and the exit behind him became blocked one final time, leaving the two “lovers” isolated and alone at last. Ivy laid seductively on the plant like a throne, and greeted Robin with a warm smile and invited him to come join to her. Robin slowly made his way across the lily pond by walking on the giant lily pads until he reached Ivy and laid beside her on her throne. Robin told Ivy he loved her and wanted them to be together forever, but first he needed to make sure she was being honest about "turning over a new leaf." He ignored her attempts to seduce him by flirting with him again and specifically asked her to tell him what she and Freeze had planned as a "sign of trust" from her. Ivy offered to tell him if he kissed her first, but Robin refused and said he would kiss her if she told him first. Ivy revealed Freeze's plan to freeze Gotham and Robin quickly tuned to leave, saying he had to stop him. Ivy quickly grabbed his shoulders and turned him to face her, speaking gently to him: "One kiss, my love...for luck." giving a seductive smile. Robin stared at Ivy's smiling lips silently before lifting his gaze to her eyes, and unable to resist her anymore, gave a soft breath and slowly nodded his head. Ivy gently placed a hand on Robin's cheek and they both leaned forward, closing their eyes. As they leaned forward, Robin missed the evil smirk Ivy had, before their lips finally met in a passionate, romantic kiss. The two held each other close and moaned deeper into their lip lock, enjoying the soft feeling of each other's lips. Robin poured all his love for Ivy into his kiss with her, and felt Ivy kissing him back with equal loving force. After a few moments, but what felt like forever to the two of them, Ivy pulled away from Robin, breaking their kiss. Ivy and Robin opened their eyes and looked at each other, and Ivy rubbed noses with Robin while gently stroking his chin lovingly with a finger. In mock "sadness" Ivy revealed her true colors to Robin, saying "Bad luck I'm afraid. Time to die little Robin." before leaning back and smirking at Robin in victory. Robin however made a reveal of his own, and mimicking Ivy's mock sad tone whispered to her "I hate to disappoint you but..." and peeled off his upper lip, revealing it to be covered in rubber. As Ivy's smug look changed to a look of horror, Robin finished "rubber lips are immune to your charms." Robin had played Ivy like a fiddle since he arrived at her lair. He had finally listened to Batman and took precautions against Ivy, wearing rubber lips to prevent her poison from entering him, until he could tell whose side she was truly on. He had tricked Ivy by pretending to be blindingly in love with her, the same way she had pretended to be in love with him, so she would let down her guard against him and tell him her plan. The final step in his plan was to test if Ivy's love for him was real by sharing a kiss with her and seeing her reaction afterwards, a test Ivy had just failed. Ivy's shock soon wore off and she became fueled with rage. Her gaze turned from the rubber lip to Robin as she glared angrily at him. The romantic mood set between the two of them had been destroyed by the two of them revealing their lies and mistrust in each other, and Ivy was enraged that the young hero had not only managed to outsmart her and beat her at her own game, but had successfully stolen a kiss from her. Before Robin could place Ivy under arrest, Ivy lunged forward with a feral snarl, catching Robin off-guard, and shoved him away from her. Robin lost his balance and fell backwards, tumbling off the throne the two had been sharing and splashed into the lily pond. The plants in the water immediately sensed Ivy's anger and turned against Robin, wrapping around him and attempting to drown him for his betrayal against Ivy. As Robin struggled to break free from Ivy's plants, Ivy smirked at the drowning hero and slowly began to walk away. Ivy turned to her "lover" one last time and as revenge against him ended their "relationship" by mockingly shouting "see ya!" to him while waving him goodbye, just to rub in that she was "breaking up with him" before leaving him to his fate. Robin however, managed to fight against Ivy's plants and eventually emerged from the water for air. He soon managed to cut himself free and saw the ending of the fight between Poison Ivy and Batgirl. Poison Ivy had been defeated and knocked back on to her throne, which closed around Ivy as she screamed, trapping her. Batgirl revealed herself to be Barbara Wilson, Alfred's niece, and Batman and Robin allowed her to join them to stop Mr. Freeze. With that, Robin joined his teammates to stop Mr. Freeze, but took one moment to glance back at Poison Ivy trapped in her own creation. Although still having feelings for the villainous, Robin quickly overcame his inner conflict and abandoned Poison Ivy, leaving her, as well as his love for her, trapped in her own lair. Despite his relationship with Poison Ivy proving to be a disaster, Robin quickly developed a new romantic interest in Batgirl, though managed to take a slower and healthier approach to a relationship with her. Together, the new Terrific Trio managed to stop Freeze and save Gotham City before delivering him and Poison Ivy back to Arkham. Robin ultimately buried the hatchet with Batman and together with Batgirl continued to fight crime in Gotham. Background Information and Notes Early attempts Robin was set to appear in the original film. Irish child actor Ricky Addison Reed was cast in role. The release of the 'Death in the Family' storyline which featured the death of the current Robin, helped convince Warner Brothers that Robin wasn't important. Tim Burton and Sam Hamm were happy to eliminate him from the script. However, Warner Brothers executive Mark Canton would mutter at dailies "Where's Robin? Where's Robin?" , with the intended to be worn by an actor.]] Robin was also considered to be in Batman Returns, and had been written in the original script, but was later removed by Wesley Strick. Burton asked to DC to change Robin's costume, because they couldn't use it as it was. DC managed to get over ten artists to submit new costume designs. None of them were aware it was intended to be shown to the film company, except for Neal Adams because of some skeptical negotiation communications. With this in mind, he addressed what be considered problematic to filmmakers. The main innovations were turning the yellow cape black on the outside, and green tights to cover his legs instead of being bare legged. According to Adams, this solved all of the production teams problems, but they wanted him to go one step further and design at darker Robin. Adams submitted a design like this to DC but advised not to show it to film company because it would ruin their brand recognition. Though this design didn't make to final pre-production phase, the costume was used on a Robin figure in the Batman Returns toyline. The figure had flat top hairdo, like Marlon Wayans as opposed to the current Robin in the comics wearing the new costume. In the later script, he was portrayed as a technologically savvy street kid who would help Batman following his narrow escape when The Penguin tried to kill him. He would later play a crucial role in Batman's final confrontation with The Penguin. He was simply called Robin, has no known real name, and was to be played by Marlon Wayans. Wayans screen tested in mechanic jumpsuit with an R on it. It was decided there were "too many characters" and Robin was written out once again. Batman Forever , similar to Neal Adams' effort.]] By the third film, there was a greater desire to please children after their reaction to the second film. Robin went through a number of designs, now the would definitely be included in the series. Bob Ringwood designed a costume based on the Neal Adams design, the traditional suit only made its way into the film as circus costumes. Much like the storyboards for the first film. Later a black costume, closer to what Batman wears considered but discarded. most like due to brand recognition related problems. The final design in film incorporated from both designs. It retained black/yellow cape and green tights covering the legs, but costume itself was closer to what Batman was wearing in the film. Batman & Robin In the fourth film, the costume is based on the character's Nightwing costume from the modern comics. The main difference being the chest emblem being red instead of blue. At the end of the film a silver version is used as a kind of Arctic Armor. Trivia *Before being cast as Batman in the Christopher Nolan Batman trilogy, Christian Bale audition for Robin in the third film. *Both Ben Affleck and Matt Damon auditioned to play Robin for "Batman" (1989) before the character was scrapped. Affleck would eventually play Bruce Wayne/Batman in the DC Extended Universe, he played the character in "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" (2016), "Suicide Squad" (2016) and "Justice League" (2017) *Marlon Wayans was set to play Robin in "Batman Returns", before the character was cut, he was also cast as the character in a third film if Burton had returned, but these plans were abandoned. *Before Chris O'Donnell was cast as Robin, Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Mark Wahlberg, Scott Speedman, Toby Stephens, Jude Law, Ewan McGregor, Corey Feldman and Corey Haim were all considered for the role. Gallery Robin poster.jpg| O'Donnell.png| Robin_for.jpg| DickDisc.png| RobinBlue.png| Robin-promo-BatmanAndRobin.jpg| References External links * Dick Grayson (Burtonverse) at DC Comics Database * Robin (Chris O'Donnell) at Batman Wiki * Robin at the Batman: The Animated Series Wiki. * Nightwing at the DC Cinematic Universe Wiki. Category:Batman Forever characters Category:Batman & Robin characters Category:Vigilantes